Oil filter



March 4, 1952 Q ROOD 2,587,903

OIL FILTER Filed June 25, 1948 G. JJROOQZ 9 INVENTOR 1 BY I I A ATTORNEYS /Z Patented Mar. 4, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,537,903 OIL FILTER Clarence J. Rood; Fergus Falls, Minn.

Application June 25, 1948, Serial No. 35,216

1 Claim.

This invention relates to oil filters, such as are most commonly used on automotive vehicles, but which can be used as a part of any lubricating system requiring a filter of the general type.

An important object of the invention is to provide a filter as described novelly formed and Still another object is to provide a filter of;

the type in which the parts are easily separable;

for ready substitution of a new filter cartridge,"

and for cleansing of the entire device when desired.

With the foregoing and other objects in view. which Will appear as the description proceeds; the invention consists of certain novel details of construction and combinations of parts, hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a filter constructed in accordance with the invention, portions being shown in horizontal section.

Figure 2 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in vertical section.

Referring to the drawings in detail, 5 is a metal casing, formed open at its upper end and having a curvingly depressed bottom 6. Adjacent the center of the bottom, a nipple l is formed on the casing, this having a threaded opening receiving drain plug 8. A washer 9 is interposed between the plug and the nipple, to prevent leakage.

tom of the filter. The projecting lower end ll of the bolt is threaded, and formed in this end is a socket 12 adapted to receive, and to be suit- A removable bolt l0 extends from top to botably connected to in any suitable manner, a tube member which is part of the lubricating system, and which has not been illustrated, since it is wholly conventional.

In thelower portion of the bolt In, and com-.

municating with the socket I2, is an axial bore" 13, constituting an inlet passage whereby the oil is fed into the filter. This bore opens into a transverse opening l4 formed in the bolt and the oil proceeds through the opening l4 into the casing. Above the opening I4, the bolt I0 is formed solid as at l5, and is solid to its reduced threaded upper end l6.

To secure the bolt in position at the bottom of the casing 5, I provide a depression ll formed at the center of the bottom 6. A nut 18 is threaded on the bolt I 0. Nut [8, after being threaded on the bolt, can be spot welded thereto,

if desired, since it is not contemplated that it need be removed. The nut is non-circular as toits outer surface, and the depression I! is formed correspondingly, thus to support the bolt firmly to the bottom 6 and to prevent relativerotation.

A washer IS, to prevent leakage, is positioned on the projecting lower end of the bolt, and a lock nut 20 is threaded on said lower end to secure the part firmly.

Near its upper end, the casing 5 is pressed inwardly as at 2| to provide an annular seat or ledge 22 that extends inwardly, and constitutes a support for a filter cartridge in a manner to be presently described.

Above the seat 22, there is projected outwardlyfrom the casing 5 a nipple 23, having a threadedopening 24, that constitutes the outlet for the cleansed oil, said outlet opening 24 being threaded for coupling to the lubricating system through which the oil passes after leaving the filter.

The upper edge 25 of the casing 5 is pressed inwardly to a slight extent, as readily apparent from Fig. 2.

The filter cartridge 26 is preferably of metal material, and is closed at top and bottom. Near the upper end of the cartridge, the side wall thereof is crimped to provide a fiange 21 that is supported by the seat 22. A gasket 28 is interposed between the fiange and the seat, to prevent leakage between the inlet and outlet chambers of the filter.

The side wall of the filter 26 is formed around this entire periphery with spaced openings 29,"

that constitute inlets for oil passing into the cartridge. These openings terminate approximately in the vicinity of the flange 21, and short of the upper end of the cartridge.

The cartridge is filled with filter material 30, which is of any suitable type, though preferably shredded cotton or waste is used.

The bottom of the flltercartridge is positioned at a substantial distance above the bottom 6 of the casing, and this defines a lower reservoir 3|, communicating at its upper end with an annular passage 32 for oil forced -up from the reservoir, the oil being then directed through the openings 29 in the side wall of the cartridge.

In the imperforate bottom of the filter cartridge is formed a central opening 33 of a diameter somewhat larger than the diameter of the bolt Ill. The portion of said cartridge bottom surrounding this opening is crimped as at 34 to provide an annular groove receiving the lower end of a tubular member 35, which may be of metal or fiber material. The tubular member 35 is formed end to end with spaced longitudinally directed slots 36, which are preferably disposed in staggered relation.

The tubular member 35 is of substantially larger diameter than the diameter of the bolt l5, so that there is thus defined an annular passage 3'! surrounding the bolt, into which is directed the cleansed oil, said oil passing into the passage through the slots 36.

The upper end wall of the filter cartridge 26 is also provided with a crimped portion 38, so as to receive the upper end of the tubular member 35.

Fitted snugly to the bolt l0, and pressed tightly against the crimped portion 34 of the filter cartridge, is a seal 39, preferably of cork material, though any other resilient and leak-preventive material can be used. A washer 4D presses against the under side of the seal 39, and a spring 4| is held under compression between the washer and the nut l8, so that the seal 39 is pressed tightly against the crimped portion 34, thus to prevent oil from passing from the reservoir 3| directly into the opening 33.

Depending from the bottom of the filter cartridge is an inwardly flanged and centrally apertured bearing ring 42, that supports the seal 39. In this connection, the construction embodied at the lower end of the filter cartridge is such, as

will be noted, as permits deviation of the cartridge 26 relative to the bolt II! that extends through it, so that they need not be aligned axially with complete accuracy. It sometimes ,ha-ppens that when a cartridge is positioned in a casing, it does not seat in a manner whereby it would be in full axial alignment with the parts associated with the cartridge. This results in interior leaks with the result that oil may leave the filter without being cleansed. Using a construction as described, it will be observed that the filter cartridge'do-es not have to seat with complete exactness, and if it deviates from a position of proper alignment with the bolt, communication is nevertheless prevented between .the inlet chamber and outlet chamber, except of course through the filter material 30.

In the upper end wall of the filter cartridge is formed a large central opening 43, through edge of the casing, an annular sealing ring 41' being interposed therebetween.

The cover 45 is also flanged inwardly near its periphery, as shown at 48, thus defining a seat for the upper end 49 of 'a spring 50. Spring 50 is preferably, though not necessarily, rectangular in cross section, and at its upper end may be formed to fit snugly in the inwardly flanged portion 48 of the cover. By reason of this construction, the cover can be removed without disengagement of the upper end of the spring from the cover. The lower end of the spring presses downwardly against the flange 21, and thus holds the cartridge 26 firmly pressed against the seat 22 of the casing.

A nut 5| threads on the upper end of the bolt I0, and interposed between the nut 5| and the cover 45 is a sealing washer 52 to prevent leaks.

The filter can be mounted on any suitable structural part of the vehicle. To this end, I provide .a single encircling strap 53 of resilient metal material, the ends of which are extended outwardly as spaced cars 54 receivingfasteni-ng means 55 whereby the strap is tightly clamped to the easing. The medial portion of the strap is pressed A bracket 69 slides on the medial portion 56 of I the strap 53, this bracket having a curved extension 6| that is interposed between the casingwall and the strap 53. It will thus be observedthat bracket 69 is slidably adjustable around the easing, so that it can be positioned to accommodate various structural designs in vehicles to which the filter is to be attached.

The operation of the filter is as follows: Oilpasses into the filter through the inlet passage 3,

and proceeds into the inlet chamber of the filter,

' the imperforate bottom of the cartridge as it' passes into the lower reservoir 3|. A preliminary deposit of grit and dirt gravitates to the bottom of the lower reservoir 3| during this action. The oil is now forced upwardly through the passage 32, and enters all the openings 29, moving radially and inwardly through the filter material 30. The oil now enters the inner chamber, the passage 31 defined between the tubular member 35 and bolt l0 constituting a lower extension of said inner chamber. The oil thus passes into the inner chamber from top to bottom of the tubular member 35. thus being efiectively cleaned by reason of its having passed through the filter material 30.

tant characteristics of the filter may now be readily noted. The filter. is capable of easy assembly and disassembly, and permits ready substitution of new cartridges as necessary. The life of each cartridge is believed prolonged by the fact that all the filter material is impregnated to an equal extent, since oil enters and leaves the cartridge simultaneously, practically from top to bot- 5 tom of the cartridge. Prolongation of the life of the cartridge is further provided for by the fact that much of the grit and dirt finds its way to the bottom 6 of the casing, before the oil moves into the cartridge.

Additionally, the particular formation of the casing, cartridge, and cover, are such that all parts are positioned securely therein, with leaks between the inlet and outlet chambers being effectively prevented, as well as leaks from the easing itself. The seal arranginent at the lower end of the cartridge permits a certain amount of misalignment of the cartridge in the casing, without detracting in any way from the efiiciency of the filter.

It will be appreciated that the spring 50 will be of greater strength than the spring 4| so that the spring 50 will sealably engage the cartridge flange against the ledge of the casing, while placing the spring 4| under compression to an extent as will cause the spring 4| to urge the gasket 39 upwardly against the seat 34 of the cartridge.

What is claimed is:

In a filter a casing open at its upper end; a

cover for the casing; a main bolt extending up- A wardly through the center of the casing and through the cover; means at the upper end of the bolt for sealably engaging the periphery of the cover against the casing; an inwardly directed annular ledge on the upper end of the casing; a :1

cartridge having an out-turned flange at its upper end supported on said ledge and having an axial passage the wall of which is substantially spaced from and surrounds the main bolt, the wall of said passage being well spaced from the main bolt from end to end of the passage; a spring held under compression between the flange and the cover and urging the cartridge downwardly for sealing engagement of the flange and ledge; an annular seat formed on the cartridge at the lower end of said passage; an annular supporting bracket depending from the lower end of the cartridge and surrounding said seat; a resilient gasket surrounding the bolt and supported by the bracket in position below the seat, whereby upward pressure against said gasket will force the peripheral portion of the gasket into sealing engagement against the seat; and a spring of lesser strength than the first spring and interposed between the lower end of the cartridge and the bottom of the casing, said last mentioned spring being placed under compression by the downwardly urged cartridge to urge said gasket upwardly into sealing engagement against the seat when the cartridge is seated in the casing.

CLARENCE J. .ROOD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: 

